My middle aged nerves

When I said to my friend this morning "Can it get any better than this?" because it was -12 c, the roads were as slippery as a rink, school had been cancelled so the kids were home, one of the neighbours, a fishermen who sells lobsters to Tim was standing in my front hall at 7:05 a.m. as I tried to get ready for work (I told him he could at least have started my car) and my job is just nuts having just gone from 'bad to worse to back again since you came here' as on of my co-workers told me. My friend said in reply "I can think of ways to get out of this situation but not one of them are legal" So, I am apparently not alone in my middle-aged-female-sandwich generation frustration.

Before I had children I could not comprehend how a mother could leave their kids but... since I have had teenagers I wonder why so many have stayed through those years. And we've really been luckier than others I know of - It's been quite a ride. To see daughter #1 have a wonderful 'writing voice' which her grandfather would be thrilled about and her grandmother's artistic ability. To hear daughter # 2 speak French as if she were from Church Point, not just attending university there. To watch the only son morph into SuperFisherman when on the water. To look in amazement at daughter # 3 as she heads towards nursing - something I never thought any of my children would do but... if anyone is going to do it and thrive, she will. Can't believe that I'm old enough to have these 4 doing all these things!

Friends of my age complain of being imprisoned or having no roots but I just feel like I live life in the fast lane - no time to worry about being stuck or floating. If I'm trying to put a positive slant on my present lifestyle - at least it's not boring. As a former co-worker once said about someone complaining of not being stimulated. "How can they be bored? I can entertain myself looking out the window?" Guess that's the difference between being creative or not.

What would I do if I won the 'retire at 50 lottery?' Well, if I was to spend my time at home it sure wouldn't be doing housework. There are way too many good books to read, too many photos to scrapbook, walks to take, gardens to create and new crafts to learn. And especially, too many plans to make! Now where did I put that atlas??